


bad moon rising

by kiyoooooooomi (hoetaku97)



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: F/F, Hiking, Horror, Injury
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-05
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-16 19:07:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,023
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29212404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hoetaku97/pseuds/kiyoooooooomi
Summary: The old folks in the village have a scary story they like to tell teenagers to keep them out of the woods at night, the story of a wandering spirit in the hills who lures lost hikers to their deaths. They tell of her moans and cries echoing across the trees to reach sympathetic ears, of the way the woods bend at her command. She is a woman who, at some point in the 1700s according to legend, after finding her husband in the arms of another, wandered into the mountain and jumped to her death in the valley below from a high cliff. Now she wanders in search of a companion amongst those unfortunate enough to find themselves on the mountain after dark.A bunch of bullshit if Miwa ever heard it.
Relationships: Haiba Alisa/Kageyama Miwa
Comments: 2
Kudos: 12





	bad moon rising

_ 18:30 _

The sun has begun to set, passing just behind the peaks. Miwa clicks her tongue in dissatisfaction at the time on her phone. 

She should have been back at base an hour ago, and now she will have to navigate the trail in the dark.

Getting down in the dark won’t be  _ impossible _ , per say, but significantly more dangerous and difficult. Miwa had gotten a late start to her journey this morning, and in all her stubbornness, refused to postpone or call off the hike all together. Now, as darkness begins to creep through the trees, she begins to truly see the error of her ways, the flaws in her line of thinking. She had not accounted for the way the trees twist and warp in the pitch blackness, or the way every snap of a branch sounds so close, like something just above her head waiting for her to pass under to sink its sharp claws into her flesh.

Miwa isn’t a coward, though. Perhaps if she were, just the stories about this place would have been enough to dissuade her from a night hike.

The old folks in the village have a scary story they like to tell teenagers to keep them out of the woods at night, the story of a wandering spirit in the hills who lures lost hikers to their deaths. They tell of her moans and cries echoing across the trees to reach sympathetic ears, of the way the woods bend at her command. She is a woman who, at some point in the 1700s according to legend, after finding her husband in the arms of another, wandered into the mountain and jumped to her death in the valley below from a high cliff. Now she wanders in search of a companion amongst those unfortunate enough to find themselves on the mountain after dark.

A bunch of bullshit if Miwa ever heard it.

It seems like every mountain town has their own rendition of the story, an old wives tale to be told around campfires to ensure a sleepless evening. Miwa grew up around the sort of superstitious people who would buy into that sort of thing, her great grandmother being one of the village elders who would perhaps take part in weaving such a tale. Her great grandmother had warned her of evil spirits, of lingering in the woods at night, but Miwa thought herself just a bit smarter. 

There are, however, real dangers of hiking these mountains at night, such as the bobcat dozing in the center of the trail. Those are the real things to be feared in these hills, those are the real sharp claws. Miwa looks to her left, then to her right, with a heavy sigh. She would have to break off from the trail to move around the bobcat and try to gradually make her way back. With footsteps as soft as Miwa could possibly manage, she heads east, planning to go around and back down to the trail.

_ 19:45 _

The cries for help begin about an hour after Miwa diverges from the trail.

Miwa is, admittedly, spooked. It feels too similar to the stories, despite her own skepticism and personal beliefs. 

And yet.

It’s far more likely that it’s another lost hiker, one just like herself, lost and injured. It’s a chance she can’t ignore, because to ignore those cries would be to sentence them to death, a far too weighty price to pay for superstition.

She turns back towards the sounds of the cries, a woman’s voice coming from higher up in the peaks. Miwa’s guilt wins out over her self-preservation, and she heads back up the way she came, following the sound. 

There’s a full moon overhead, giving some light to the ground below Miwa’s feet. She can see all manner of life that slither and crawl around her feet, can see the dry leaves that crunch under her boots. The trees lean down towards her with branches like arms that threaten to scoop Miwa into their embrace, and she wants nothing more than to be at base. She was a fool, she realizes now, but it’s far too late to think of such things. She estimates she has about thirty minutes before coming face to face with the strained voice echoing across the woods.

_ 20:22 _

Finally, after what amounted to nearly forty minutes of climbing up, Miwa reaches a clearing. The moonlight streams down without interference from the surrounding trees, clearly illuminating the ground below, and the girl with silver hair lying on her side, crying out in pain.

“Are you alright?” Miwa rushes to her side, dropping down immediately to examine the girl’s badly bruised and swollen ankle. Her foot is stick in a hole and her clothes are filthy from lying amongst the scattered leaves and sticks.

“Yeah, I just tripped and fell,” the girl says through tears. “I just want to go home, please help me.”

Miwa considers her options. She isn’t particularly strong, and it’s a long way down, but they can’t afford to stay here overnight. It’s an easy decision.

“Yeah, I’ll help you. If you can stand, you can lean on me for support. I know it’s not ideal, but it’s the best I’ve got.”

Working together, they bring the girl up to standing, draping one of her arms around Miwa’s shoulders as they begin the slow trekk back down the mountain. Based on the time it took her to climb up, she thinks it will take about four hours to get back to base.

Miwa shifts her weight under the girl’s arm as she hops beside her. “My name is Miwa, by the way. What’s your name?”

“Alisa.”

“Well Alisa, buckle up, because it’s going to be a long night.”

_ 21:52 _

The darkness is thick and oppressive, the night deathly silent. 

No one speaks.

They wouldn’t dare.

_ 22:46 _

Alisa is panting hard, out of breath from the toll only using one leg has taken on her body. Her lungs are heaving and Miwa can feel Alisa’s heart thundering against her side. Miwa is exhausted too, Alisa’s body a lead weight, but more than anything else, she is determined to survive this night.

The temperature has been steadily dropping for the last hour and Miwa is grateful to have Alisa close, at least. The bitter chill would perhaps be unbearable without the warmth of her skin against Miwa’s own. She doesn’t speak often, and for the post part, they descend in silence.

Talking expends energy neither of them have to spare.

Miwa’s phone stopped working about an hour ago, ghe screen dissolving into a series of jumbled lines and static, despite no damage having been done to the outside. The surroundings have all begun to look the same, and Miwa can’t help but feel they’re moving in circles, despite being sure they were running parallel to the trail.

The night distorts everything, Miwa rationalizes. It’s nothing to dwell on.

“Do you have someone waiting for you? At the bottom, I mean,” Alisa speaks suddenly, shattering the silence that had molded itself around them.

Miwa shakes her head, doubtful of whether Alisa catches the movement. “I’m just passing through this town alone. My family is all back in Miyagi.” Miwa cuts her eyes to the side to spare a glance at Alisa. “What about you? Anyone waiting for you back at home? Maybe a boyfriend?”

Alisa snorts, despite herself. “No, nothing like that. I’m from here but I live alone.”

Miwa’s cheeks flush in embarrassment as having asked such an invasive question, but she’s relieved Alisa doesn’t have a partner. It feels silly to be worried about such things now, but her beauty isn’t lost on Miwa. Her eyes shimmer in the lowlight from the flashlight in Miwa’s hand, her cheeks flushed from exertion. In any other situation, she’s the kind of girl Miwa might have flirted with a little, maybe asked for her number.

Maybe at the bottom, maybe Miwa would try.

She can’t help but smile at the thought that perhaps something good could come of this.

_ 23:32 _

Something is wrong. Alisa has gone silent, her breathing shallow. She looks as though life has slowly been drained from her in the last hour, her complexion pallid and her warm laughter dying away completely. Her injury wasn’t that severe from what Miwa could gather, so there seems to be no explanation for the sudden change. 

Once vibrant and warm, now ghoulish and cold. 

Miwa wants to attribute it to exhaustion, but it seems like something  _ more.  _ Her skin is stretched thin over her cheekbones and her lips are bone-dry, leaving her with little to no resemblance to the girl she picked up in the clearing.

The old folks in the village come to mind once more as the sound of Alisa’s shallow breathing reaches Miwa’s ears.

Something is wrong.

_ 00:00 _

Trees give way to more trees and Alisa hasn’t spoken in at least an hour and a half, seemingly growing weaker with each passing minute. They should be moving down, so Miwa has no explanation for why the air seems to be so much thinner. It feels like there’s no air to be had, like she can’t get enough inside her lungs to ease the burning pain. 

Alisa looks dead behind the eyes, like the lights are on but nobody’s home. Her shallow breathing is the only thing left to confirm that she is, in fact, still there. She certainly doesn’t have much to offer in the way of directions, only slight nods in reply to Miwa’s questions.

“Miwa.”

Alisa’s voice in the quiet startles Miwa, making her jump. “Yes?”

“Do you trust me?”

Miwa feels a rush of apprehension. “Why are you asking me such a strange question?”

“Just answer, please.”

“I’ve been carrying you on my back for the better part of three hours so I’d say so, yes. Why do you need to know?”

Suddenly, Alisa moves quick as a whip and she’s behind Miwa, holding her by the shoulders. “I’m sorry Miwa, I’m so sorry,” Alisa sobs into Miwa’s ear.

Miwa looks out and all she can see is trees. She doesn’t understand. It doesn’t make sense. “Sorry for what?”

“I’m so sorry, I can’t do it anymore, I just can’t.”

A breeze rushes up seemingly from the ground, hitting Miwa square in the jaw, blowing her hair back, and suddenly everything seems a bit clearer.

She’s on the edge of a cliff, staring down into the valley below, and everything seems a bit clearer.

It’s Alisa. It was always Alisa.

Alisa is the spirit in the woods, and Miwa had fallen right into her trap. The old folks in the village would surely have a laugh when they heard of the missing girl who got lost on her night hike. She feels foolish, she feels scared, she knows how this ends.

“Are you afraid?” Alisa’s voice is weak and wavering.

“Terrified,” Miwa replies without hesitation. The wind whistles through the valley below. There are tears forming at the corners of her eyes.

Alisa gently strokes her hair, tucking it behind Miwa’s ear as they both cry. “Forgive me, please forgive me. I just can’t do this anymore.”

“You don’t have to do this. You don’t. Please let me go.” Miwa’s voice is pleading, despite how futile it feels at this moment. She would pray to God, but God is no longer listening. He has turned a blind eye to these peaks, to Miwa’s distress.

“I can’t. You know I can’t.”

“I know, Alisa.”

“I can’t be alone anymore,  _ I can’t _ ,” Alisa wails and despite everything, it breaks Miwa’s heart. 

“It’s okay, Alisa. It’s going to be okay, I promise.” Miwa can’t resist the urge to console the weeping spirit, can’t push aside the pain that rushes into her chest at the thought of the suffering Alisa must surely have endured in life and in every moment since.

“I’m sorry baby.”

It’s the last words Miwa hears before she is gently shoved into the waiting darkness down below.

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> i’m on twitter @flowerboyomi


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